Warren delay has Wall St. wondering

That is what some on Wall Street want the White House to answer about the lack of a nominee to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the new watchdog agency created by the sweeping financial reform bill.

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President Barack Obama signed the Dodd-Frank bill into law nearly two months ago, touting creation of the CFPB as one of its biggest provisions. The agency will have sweeping authority to oversee financial products from mortgages to credit cards, putting it at the center of the American banking industry.

Well before the bill became law, however, progressive groups and liberal members of Congress were arguing that Elizabeth Warren, a Harvard law professor and consumer advocate, should be the CFPB’s first chairwoman. The role, they contend, would allow her to shape the culture of the organization for years to come — and determine just how aggressive it will be.

Warren met with Obama in the White House on Tuesday, fueling speculation that her nomination is imminent. A Warren spokesman declined to comment on the matter.

Although Warren’s has been the name most often mentioned to lead the bureau, her potential nomination has been highly contentious for several reasons, and the strong push from the left to pick her has put the White House in something of a bind. As of Thursday afternoon, administration officials were saying other candidates, such as Assistant Treasury Secretary Michael Barr, remain in the running.

Press secretary Robert Gibbs said Thursday the president “has options to look through and is going through those options” before settling on a nominee for the powerful job. While his pick probably won't come in the "next couple of days," Gibbs said, an announcement is likely to come in "probably the not-too-distant future."

This has led to much speculation among financial industry executives, who see Warren as a strident, anti-Wall Street zealot who is unwilling to reach consensus on issues.

“This is one of the longest and most public campaigns for a government job in memory. She has had every liberal interest and progressive group weigh in on her behalf,” one senior banking industry executive said. “I'm beginning to think that enough senior officials around Obama actually do have real concerns about her but they can't risk alienating the ‘professional left’ by not nominating her. Or, alternatively, perhaps all in the White House agree she's the one and the delay is simply a result of a super deliberate and intensive vetting process.”

Warren counts among her supporters one of the bill’s co-authors, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.). However, one theory holds that Frank may want the job himself, especially if Democrats lose control of the House in November and he must relinquish his chairmanship. Frank has dismissed such talk as ludicrous and reiterated his support for Warren.